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Week in Review 7/6/2018

Submitted by holliswein on Fri, 07/06/2018 - 12:00am

This week we celebrated July 4th and the 54th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act while we wait for President Trump to announce his next Supreme Court nominee. These two events, nearly 188 years apart, are linked by the "unalienable Rights" of life, liberty and happiness. It is the pursuit and the protection of those rights that brings us to this pivotal moment in our nation's life - the next Supreme Court Justice.

The next justice will have the grave responsibility of deciding what type of country we will live in for the next 40-50 years. No other presidential decision, except going to war, is as consequential as choosing a justice for the nation's highest court.

The Supreme Court is the final judge in all cases involving laws of Congress, and the highest law of all - the Constitution. Our President has questioned, and even tried to step over, many of the principals laid out in the Constitution. We count on the Supreme Court to defend the Constitution against political powers.

The U.S. Supreme Court is also the ultimate backstop against policies that restrict reproductive rights. Trump's promise to appoint a judge to overturn Roe v Wadeputs the legal right to access abortion on the line. Many other hard fought rights are at risk as well.

At least twenty states are poised to immediately seek to ban abortion if Roe were overturned. States have their best chance in decades to push anti-abortion measures and pull back rights without fear of judicial override. A new SCOTUS justice could mean a direct threat to women's rights to control their own bodies.

Actions speak louder than words. It is not enough to be concerned. You must act. Call the Senate. Tell your Senators to only vote for a judicial nominee who protects our reproductive health care, not one who attacks it. Let your Senators know you are watching their vote and that you vote, too.